The end of March often brings a flood of new laws as many of the states with shorter annual legislative sessions begin wrapping up their work. This year proved no different as it relates to AI legislation; we tracked 19 new laws regulating AI passed over the last two weeks alone. Read on for details on all of these new laws, which you can explore further in Plural.
While some sessions are winding down, others are just starting to heat up, and that is reflected in the new bills discussed below. Over the past two weeks we also added 57 new bills to our tracker, and you can view those here.
New Bills to Watch
11 states (and the U.S. Congress) introduced new AI legislation over these past two weeks (again you can view those here). States that will continue to meet over the summer like California, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, and Wisconsin provided a significant number of the new introductions.
You can examine our full dataset broken down by category (more explanation on that here) in Plural using the links below.
Restricting AI – 742 bills (+37 new bills since last posting)
Since we last posted in mid-March, we have gone from 6 new AI laws passed in 2026 to 25! Another 27 bills have passed both chambers in their legislative process and could be on their way to becoming law soon. Each of the 19 new AI laws is detailed below, with links to explore further in Plural.
Colorado
SB 11 – Relates to search warrants provided to covered platforms including social media companies and AI platforms.
Idaho
S 1227 – Adds a new Chapter 70 to Title 33 (Education) of Idaho Code, establishing a comprehensive framework for the use of generative artificial intelligence in K-12 public education.
S 1297 – Establishes regulations for conversational AI services.
New York
S 8828 – Establishes a regulatory framework for large-scale AI developers operating in New York State, focusing on transparency, safety reporting, and accountability for advanced “frontier” AI models.
Oregon
SB 1546 – Establishes regulations for AI companion platforms in Oregon — systems designed to simulate human-like platonic, intimate, or romantic relationships with users.
Tennessee
HB 1513 – Requires political advertisements utilizing deepfake or artificial intelligence technology to include disclaimers.
SB 1580 – Regulates the use of artificial intelligence systems claiming to act as mental health professionals.
Utah
Governor Spencer Cox (R) continues to make a name for himself (and Utah) as a skeptic of AI and a leader in the push to regulate the emerging technology. The Governor has signed 9 new AI bills into law just this year (8 of these were signed over the past two weeks).
HB 218 – Strengthens and formalizes the content requirements for the existing grades 7-8 digital skills course, including by ensuring coverage of artificial intelligence literacy.
HB 273 – Comprehensively regulates classroom technology use in Utah public schools by limiting screen-time (especially in early grades), mandating AI literacy education, establishing guardrails on AI use by both students and educators, and creating support structures for students who struggle with technology-based learning.
HB 276 – Bans the non-consensual generation and distribution of counterfeit intimate images (AI-generated deepfake intimate/sexual images) by both generation services and online platforms. Also requires transparency about the origin and authenticity of digital content from large online platforms, AI providers, government agencies, and others.
HB 289 – Reorganizes and addresses offenses related to artificially generated child sexual abuse material.
HB 320 – Amends Utah’s Office of Artificial Intelligence Policy statutes (Title 13, Chapter 72) enacted in 2024 including by expanding the scope of covered public entities, strengthening oversight, and more.
SB 256 – Amends defamation and personal identity protection laws to address artificial intelligence (AI) and digitally manipulated content.
SB 267 – This bill requires the Utah State Board of Education (state board) to study best practices for software use in public schools including as it relates to data privacy and AI.
SB 319 – This bill amends Utah’s health insurance preauthorization laws (Section 31A-22-650) with several significant changes including increased disclosure requirements for the use of AI by insurers.
Washington
HB 1170 – Requiring large AI providers (1M+ monthly users) and government agencies to inform users when content is modified using artificial intelligence.
HB 2225 – Requiring chatbot operators to meet requirements around transparency disclosures and protections (for minors and against self-harm generally).
SB 5105 – Expands and strengthens existing laws against sexually explicit depictions of minors, with a particular focus on AI-generated content.
SB 5395 – Increases restrictions on the use of AI in prior authorizations by health insurance carriers.
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
Public policy work, especially at the state level, tends to be cyclical. Most state legislatures are busiest during their “regular session” in the first few months of the year before adjourning in late spring or early summer. Elsewhere, states like California, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin are “in session” for nearly the full year but are reliably busy at certain times each year (August and September in California).
But, because public policy refuses to be that predictable, policy professionals have to keep their eyes out for special legislative sessions. Read on for more details about these pop-up lawmaking periods and where they have shown up in 2025.
What is a “Special Session”?
“Special session” (or sometimes an “extraordinary session”) refers to the meeting of a legislature outside of their regular meeting cadence or structure. There is variability in the rules and processes around special sessions, but they are a part of every state’s legislative process. Thirteen states limit the ability to call a special session to the Governor. Additional rules in some states limit the frequency and length of special sessions, or the topics that may be legislated within them.
The presence of these sessions in each state requires awareness from public policy professionals. While the end of a legislative session may allow advocates time to reflect on their progress as well as their work to be done (while hopefully fitting in some vacation!), they should actively monitor discussions about special sessions, especially where legislative opportunities and risks may come back to life.
What States Have Called Special Sessions in 2025?
As of September 8, 2025 there have been 12 special sessions called in 2025 across the following states:
Colorado
Colorado lawmakers returned to Denver during the last full week of August to address a shortfall in the state’s budget related to the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act by Congress. Lawmakers also debated changes to AI regulation passed in 2024 that is due to come into force in 2026.
Florida
Legislators in Florida convened for three separate special sessions before their regular session kicked off in March, 2025. These special sessions were largely focussed on immigration and resulted in the passage of two new laws (SB 2C & SB 4C).
Minnesota
Minnesota legislators held a one-day special session to pass 15 bills primarily related to the state budget on June 9th. Following the tragic mass shooting at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis on August 27th, Governor Tim Walz indicated he would call for an additional special legislative session this fall to focus on measures to reduce gun violence.
Mississippi
After failing to pass a budget during the regular session, Mississippi lawmakers returned to Jackson for two days in May to finish their work.
Missouri
An early June special session in Missouri saw legislators debate disaster relief funding as well as tax and spending proposals to encourage professional sports teams to remain in Kansas City.
More recently, Missouri legislators returned in early September in an effort to pass a new congressional map that is more favorable to Republicans and to limit the initiative petition ballot process that has been used in recent years to protect abortion access, increase the minimum wage, and legalize recreational marijuana.
South Dakota
In late September South Dakota lawmakers are due to convene a targeted special session to debate the construction of a new men’s prison facility.
Tennessee
While the state’s regular session was ongoing, Tennessee lawmakers used a special session to pass education and immigration proposals in an expedited fashion. The special session allowed proponents of these measures to apply pressure for a quick passage and to fast-track the effective dates and implementation of this legislation.
Texas
Texas lawmakers have been at the center of the most discussed special sessions this summer. The first special session, called in part to pass new congressional maps more favorable to Republicans, was halted by a walkout from Democratic lawmakers that prevented a quorum. Following a standoff and plenty of political posturing, lawmakers returned in mid-August for a second special session that saw Republicans pass a package of their priorities including that new map.
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
On July 4th, President Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, into law. The 330-page act contains provisions that will reshape nearly every sector of the American economy and society. The rushed passage and sweeping scope of H.R. 1 have left many wondering:
What’s actually in the bill and how will it affect me?
At Plural, this opacity strikes directly against our mission. From our open data to our AI bill summarizer trained specifically on legislative text, we strongly believe in the power of technology to unlock legislative insights for policy professionals, activists, and citizens alike. With this mission in mind, we are producing a series of One Big Beautiful Bill explainers. Within each explainer, we will dive into the megabill’s impact in a specific subject area with a text-first approach that pulls impacts directly from the bill. This week we take a look at how the new law will impact American healthcare.
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future.
That’s the power of Plural.
It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists.
We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to make full participation possible.
Our Mission
The Power of Plural
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future. It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
The policymaking process is opaque, hard to access, and difficult to influence alone.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
Created for policy wonks, by policy wonks.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists. We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to bring visibility into the policy process and improve the means to participate in democracy. At Plural, we’re proud to provide intuitive, effective solutions for mission-oriented organizations to help them meet their goals.
Damola Co-Founder & CEOYemi Co-Founder & COOAlex Senior Data EngineerBen Senior Sales DirectorJesse Head of DataMax Policy ExpertRuby Head of ProductRyan Head of EngineeringSantiago Lead Data ScientistChimzi Software Engineer
First and foremost, we’re dedicated to our users. We take a user-centric approach to building our products, and we’re proud of our connections with our customers who use our product to do important work every day.
Transparent
We value trust and transparency. We want to cut the dishonesty and mistrust out of public policy, and we believe that democracy work best when information is accessible and honest.
Audacious
Speaking of honesty, let’s keep it real. What we’re building at Plural is bold. Our vision is audacious, and we’re passionate about taking on this challenge. We’re also passionate about innovation, good design, and making a difference.
Ready to Amplify Your Policy Impact?
Experience the power of Plural first-hand with a free account or schedule a demo for a live walk through of our tools. Find out how Plural can transform the way you and your team shape policy.
Economic and labor policy is constantly at the forefront of political campaigns in the United States in part because a significant number of Americans consistently rank the economy as the nation’s “most important problem.”
At the Federal level, we can find many recent examples of labor policy campaign promises that were delivered on as well as those that weren’t. Each of President Biden’s four major bills — the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act — delivered on investments in labor he touted during the 2020 campaign.
Conversely, each of the past three Presidents (and plenty of members of Congress) have pledged to raise the federal minimum wage but every effort in the past fifteen years has failed.
Throughout the 2024 campaign, President Trump focused on economic messaging and won a sizable share of votes from union households, for a Republican candidate. Trump and Congressional Republicans know they must ask voters to retain their Congressional majorities in 2026 based, in part, on their progress on these very issues.
Therefore it’s unsurprising that Republicans have returned to campaign-style messaging in touting H.R. 1 as a “pro-worker” bill. To best understand how H.R. 1 will impact the American workforce, we take a look at some of the most significant labor provisions from the bill below.
No Tax on Tips
Heavily touted within President Trump’s 2024 stump speech was the proposal to end the federal taxation of tips. Section 70201 of the newly passed legislation eliminates federal income taxes on up to $25,000 in tipped income for qualified workers earning less than $150,000 annually (those earning more receive an exemption on a smaller amount of tips).
While “no tax on tips” sounds simple enough (and makes for a compelling campaign proposal), the details in practice are more complex. The new law only applies to federal income tax and workers will still pay Medicare, Social Security, and state taxes related to this income.
Further, the administration still needs to define the occupations regularly receiving tips that will qualify for this deduction.
Finally, unlike other tax cuts within H.R. 1, section 70201 is not permanent and will expire after four years.
No Tax on Overtime Pay
Coupled with “no tax on tips” in the 2024 campaign was President Trump’s proposal to eliminate federal taxes on overtime pay. Section 70202 of H.R. 1 allows qualifying taxpayers to deduct up to $12,500 in overtime pay from their income subject to federal income tax. Overtime income will still be subject to state income taxes as well as Medicare and Social Security taxes.
Notably, the portion of overtime pay eligible for this deduction is only the “premium” that employers are required to pay for overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). If a worker makes $10 per hour and is eligible for overtime, the FLSA requires their employer to pay them $15 per hour for all hours worked over 40 in a week ($10 base pay plus a $5 premium). In this example, only the $5 per hour premium overtime pay could be deducted under H.R. 1’s new allowances. Overtime pay provided for reasons besides the FLSA requirements (like more stringent state requirements or a collective bargaining agreement) would not qualify for this deduction.
Other Tax Changes Impacting Employee Benefits
Beyond changes to taxes on tips and overtime pay, H.R. 1 makes a few other notable changes that employees could factor into their taxes:
Section 70404 expands the maximum contribution into a Dependent Care Assistance Program flexible savings account from $2,500 to $3,750 for an individual. Allowing workers with a DCAP benefit to exclude more dependent care expenses from their taxes.
H.R. 1 also makes permanent an existing tax credit allowing employers to make up to $5,250 in student loan payments on behalf of employees without an impact to an employee’s income subject to taxation.
Pell Grants for Workforce Training
Section 83002 of the new law enacts the “Workforce Pell Grant Program,” which will make Pell Grants available to individuals participating in short-term (between eight and fifteen week) job training programs. Like those changes described above, many of the details of this new program will need to be sorted out in forthcoming rulemaking.
Existing workforce training programs, community colleges, and individuals looking to make a career change or earn an additional accredited degree will certainly be following rulemaking this fall to see what programs may qualify for this new federal assistance.
Changes to “Safety Net” Programs
It is important to note that the expected benefits to workers described above are dwarfed (in size of spending) by the cuts to federal “safety net” programs like SNAP, Medicaid, and CHIP, as shown in the chart prepared by the Center for American Progress below.
Advocates on the left have pointed to this disparity in their arguments that the benefits to workers touted by the Administration are far outweighed by the negative impacts on low-income workers relying on government programs for assistance.
While the 2024 Presidential Campaign was unprecedented for a number of reasons, both candidates did follow the established playbook of focusing their policy priorities on jobs and the economy. With H.R. 1, President Trump and Congressional Republicans had their first and best chance to enact policy changes they campaigned on, including those they touted as “pro-worker.”
While campaign promises can be impactful, they lack the detail of enacted policy. And the details of “no tax on tips” and “no tax on overtime” as implemented by H.R. 1 may leave some workers confused by the limitations of the policies as enacted. Additionally, these temporary tax breaks for certain workers are due to expire just as the most significant cuts to social safety net programs are expected to come into effect and negatively impact low-income Americans.
As the details of these new policies are defined through rulemaking and as workers begin to feel their impact we should have a better sense of the degree to which voters feel the Administration has delivered on its promise to be “pro-worker.”
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
On July 4th, President Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, into law. The 330-page act contains provisions that will reshape nearly every sector of the American economy and society. The rushed passage and sweeping scope of H.R. 1 have left many wondering:
What’s actually in the bill and how will it affect me?
At Plural, this opacity strikes directly against our mission. From our open data to our AI bill summarizer trained specifically on legislative text, we strongly believe in the power of technology to unlock legislative insights for policy professionals, activists, and citizens alike. With this mission in mind, we are producing a series of One Big Beautiful Bill explainers. Within each explainer, we will dive into the megabill’s impact in a specific subject area with a text-first approach that pulls impacts directly from the bill. This week we take a look at how the new law will impact American healthcare.
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future.
That’s the power of Plural.
It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists.
We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to make full participation possible.
Our Mission
The Power of Plural
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future. It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
The policymaking process is opaque, hard to access, and difficult to influence alone.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
Created for policy wonks, by policy wonks.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists. We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to bring visibility into the policy process and improve the means to participate in democracy. At Plural, we’re proud to provide intuitive, effective solutions for mission-oriented organizations to help them meet their goals.
Damola Co-Founder & CEOYemi Co-Founder & COOAlex Senior Data EngineerBen Senior Sales DirectorJesse Head of DataMax Policy ExpertRuby Head of ProductRyan Head of EngineeringSantiago Lead Data ScientistChimzi Software Engineer
First and foremost, we’re dedicated to our users. We take a user-centric approach to building our products, and we’re proud of our connections with our customers who use our product to do important work every day.
Transparent
We value trust and transparency. We want to cut the dishonesty and mistrust out of public policy, and we believe that democracy work best when information is accessible and honest.
Audacious
Speaking of honesty, let’s keep it real. What we’re building at Plural is bold. Our vision is audacious, and we’re passionate about taking on this challenge. We’re also passionate about innovation, good design, and making a difference.
Ready to Amplify Your Policy Impact?
Experience the power of Plural first-hand with a free account or schedule a demo for a live walk through of our tools. Find out how Plural can transform the way you and your team shape policy.
The rapid advancement in artificial intelligence technology and its availability has been a defining theme of this decade so far. The speed at which large language models have become a part of our daily lives has seemingly shocked everybody, from industry leaders to policymakers. Lawmakers have just started to respond to these developments with proposals encouraging and regulating the use of AI across industries (we’ve written extensively about these actions here).
While most legislative action has been focused at the state level, the development of H.R. 1 gave President Trump an opportunity to attach AI policy to a large legislative package due to be passed on a party-line vote.
Indeed, the Trump administration responded to this opportunity with a bold proposal to impose a 10-year moratorium on the enforcement of state-level AI regulations. This provision was supported by industry but opposed by a bipartisan group of state executives and lawmakers. In the end, the measure failed to gather the support necessary to remain in the final version of the bill and was left on the sidelines as H.R. 1 became law.
While the removal of the moratorium may have been the most impactful H.R. 1 policy development related to AI, the final bill still has implications for the industry and its users. Below we detail some of those important changes.
Government Funding for Artificial Intelligence
One of the federal government’s primary tools to support specific industries is through appropriations. H.R. 1 authorizes billions in federal funding for artificial intelligence projects including:
$450 million for AI in naval shipbuilding
$124 million for AI enhancements to the Test Resource Management Center within the Department of Defense
$145 million to develop AI-powered aerial and naval attack systems
$500 million for the advancement and expansion of “the artificial intelligence ecosystem” at the Department of Defense and the “Cyber Command artificial intelligence lines of effort”
$200 million for the deployment of AI to accelerate financial audits at the Department of Defense
$115 million for nuclear national security missions tied to artificial intelligence
Section 50404 of the new law directs the Secretary of Energy to work with industry leaders to ensure the scientific data of the Department of Energy is suitable for use in artificial intelligence and machine learning models.
The law further directs the Secretary to initiate “seed efforts” for self-improving artificial intelligence models powered by this data. This data and these models are intended to be used to develop microelectronics to accelerate innovation especially in the energy sector.
H.R. 1 appropriates $150 million for these efforts. Taken together, this funding and direction indicates a desire from the Trump administration to lead on AI in the microelectronics and energy sectors.
Conclusion
By the time H.R. 1 arrived on President Trump’s desk, the biggest news in the AI policy world was the exclusion of the moratorium on the enforcement of state-level regulations. That provision’s failure opens the door for recently-passed state policy to be implemented and new policy to be developed when 2026 state legislative sessions begin.
Navigating the AI regulatory patchwork in the absence of a national framework will therefore remain an essential task for legal and compliance teams across various industries.
Although the most important takeaway from H.R. 1 as it relates to AI may be what was not included in the bill, a number of important changes in the package will change how AI is developed and utilized in the coming years. Through the appropriations and provisions included in H.R. 1, the Trump administration and Congressional Republicans have shaped the near-future of federal involvement in AI development. Given the global context surrounding the rapid advancement of AI, the decisions made in H.R. 1 will have massive implications for decades to come.
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
On July 4th, President Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, into law. The 330-page act contains provisions that will reshape nearly every sector of the American economy and society. The rushed passage and sweeping scope of H.R. 1 have left many wondering:
What’s actually in the bill and how will it affect me?
At Plural, this opacity strikes directly against our mission. From our open data to our AI bill summarizer trained specifically on legislative text, we strongly believe in the power of technology to unlock legislative insights for policy professionals, activists, and citizens alike. With this mission in mind, we are producing a series of One Big Beautiful Bill explainers. Within each explainer, we will dive into the megabill’s impact in a specific subject area with a text-first approach that pulls impacts directly from the bill. This week we take a look at how the new law will impact American healthcare.
Healthcare policy in the United States is a subject of significant division and impact. Healthcare spending accounts for nearly 20% of the country’s economy and the share of Americans with favorable views on US healthcare coverage and quality has steadily decreased over the past fifteen years.
Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010 federal efforts to radically shift how Americans access and pay for healthcare have stalled. Republicans eventually abandoned serious ACA repeal efforts after the first Trump Administration and debates over Medicare-for-all or a “public option” during the 2020 Presidential campaign never materialized into enacted policy for Democrats.
In fact, H.R. 1 may arguably be the most impactful legislation related to healthcare coverage passed since the ACA.
The Congressional Budget Office’s recently released final score of the new law estimated 10 million Americans will lose health insurance due to its provisions. Relatedly, much of the last-minute consternation from opponents of H.R. 1 centered on its potential to impact small, rural hospitals and their communities.
We expect the law’s healthcare impacts to be central to ongoing conversations as its provisions come closer to going into effect, and as lawmakers debate their efficacy ahead of the 2026 midterms. As such, it’s vitally important to understand just how this law reshapes America’s healthcare landscape, and how lawmakers may still act to change the law in the coming years.
Below you’ll find an analysis of some of the most impactful healthcare provisions within President Trump’s signature legislative package.
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future.
That’s the power of Plural.
It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists.
We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to make full participation possible.
Our Mission
The Power of Plural
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future. It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
The policymaking process is opaque, hard to access, and difficult to influence alone.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
Created for policy wonks, by policy wonks.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists. We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to bring visibility into the policy process and improve the means to participate in democracy. At Plural, we’re proud to provide intuitive, effective solutions for mission-oriented organizations to help them meet their goals.
Damola Co-Founder & CEOYemi Co-Founder & COOAlex Senior Data EngineerBen Senior Sales DirectorJesse Head of DataMax Policy ExpertRuby Head of ProductRyan Head of EngineeringSantiago Lead Data ScientistChimzi Software Engineer
First and foremost, we’re dedicated to our users. We take a user-centric approach to building our products, and we’re proud of our connections with our customers who use our product to do important work every day.
Transparent
We value trust and transparency. We want to cut the dishonesty and mistrust out of public policy, and we believe that democracy work best when information is accessible and honest.
Audacious
Speaking of honesty, let’s keep it real. What we’re building at Plural is bold. Our vision is audacious, and we’re passionate about taking on this challenge. We’re also passionate about innovation, good design, and making a difference.
Ready to Amplify Your Policy Impact?
Experience the power of Plural first-hand with a free account or schedule a demo for a live walk through of our tools. Find out how Plural can transform the way you and your team shape policy.
The tax cuts and spending in H.R. 1 are partially offset through an estimated $1 trillion in projected federal health care spending. Much of this is as the result of changes to Medicaid policy that will limit the benefits of the program and also tighten eligibility.
Amidst all the complexity, these savings generally fall into three categories: 1) reducing the number of beneficiaries on Medicaid, 2) reducing the amount Medicaid pays providers, and 3) reducing the amount the federal government reimburses state Medicaid plans. These changes largely sit within Subtitle B, Chapter 1 of the new law.
Eligibility Reductions
In addition to requirements to more rigorously enforce existing eligibility requirements (discussed below) the law makes two major changes to eligibility requirements for Medicaid programs.
First, and most notably, the law would implement requirements that most “able-bodied” adults must work (or participate in other community engagement activities like job training) 80 hours per month to be eligible for Medicaid. This requirement is expected to result in eligibility reductions that would save more than $300 billion over ten years.
Second, the law will cancel Medicaid eligibility for certain lawfully present immigrants (including asylees and refugees).
Delay Rulemaking Intended to Streamline Medicaid Enrollment
Sections 71101 and 71102 of the new law place a 9-year moratorium on the implementation of two Biden-era rules that would have made Medicaid enrollment easier (and automatic in certain circumstances) especially for Medicare beneficiaries.
The law, and its proponents, claim these rules opened the programs to fraud and made it more difficult to remove ineligible enrollees from Medicaid. Opponents argue the rules were intended to streamline the enrollment process by addressing known roadblocks in the current system that prevented individuals from receiving the benefits they were eligible for.
New Requirements for State Medicaid Administrators Aimed at Reducing Enrollment
The new law also creates savings through requirements that state Medicaid plans implement measures to more regularly track and remove ineligible individuals from their rolls. These requirements include:
Regular checks to remove deceased individuals and providers
Collaboration with the Department of Health and Human Services to flag individuals enrolled in multiple state Medicaid programs for removal
More frequent eligibility redeterminations (to determine whether individuals remain eligible based on income changes)
Changing What Medicaid Will Pay Providers
The law restricts Medicaid payments to providers in a number of specific circumstances:
Section 71112 changes current policy that allows most Medicaid beneficiaries to receive coverage for medical bills incurred in the three months prior to gaining coverage. Under the new law those who access coverage because of ACA Medicaid expansion will have one month of retroactive coverage and others will have two months.
Section 71113 prohibits Medicaid payments to certain large providers of family planning and reproductive services that provide abortions for one year.
Reducing Federal Reimbursement for Certain Medicaid Costs
As part of the ACA, the federal government incentivized state expansion of Medicaid programs by increasing the FMAP (the share of Medicaid costs the federal government will cover) for expansion populations to 90% (most state FMAPs sit around 70% for traditional Medicaid populations). The new law eliminates the incentive for states that have not expanded Medicaid from doing so. Additionally, H.R.1 will reduce a similarly expanded FMAP in place to support Medicaid coverage for individuals that would be eligible for coverage if not for their immigration status.
Taken together, these provisions disincentivize state actions to expand their Medicaid programs and leave states that have expanded coverage to immigrants with less federal support.
Provider Tax
Provider taxes, also known as provider assessments, are fees that states collect from healthcare providers to help fund their share of Medicaid costs. Providers generally support these taxes as they receive some of the money back through increased reimbursement rates.
Under H.R. 1, provider taxes will be frozen at their current levels, disallowing a tool that states and providers use to generate revenue. Further, in Medicaid expansion states “hold harmless” thresholds that currently allow states to avoid restrictions on provider taxation will be lowered from 6% to 3.5%. This restriction on a commonly used tool to fund the state share of Medicaid expansion costs will require expansion states to make hard choices in the coming years to determine how to, or whether to, fund their expansion programs.
Support for Rural Hospitals
Policymakers have been raising alarms about the financial viability of rural hospitals for quite a while now. The changes described above are expected to disproportionately impact rural hospitals, partly due to their patient populations generally relying more on Medicaid and Medicare. In response to these concerns, the authors of H.R. 1 added $50 billion in funding over five years to support “rural health transformation plans”.
Medicare Changes
Relative to the scale of changes made to the Medicaid program, there are relatively few major changes to Medicare within H.R. 1. Those that made it into the final bill include:
Section 71201 places a restriction on Medicare eligibility based on citizenship status. Medicare eligibility was eliminated for individuals with temporary protected status, refugees, and asylees.
Section 71202 makes a temporary payment increase under the Medicare physician fee schedule.
Section 71203 amends exclusions within the Medicare drug price negotiation program to further exclude “orphan drugs”.
ACA Marketplace Changes
The bill makes a number of changes to the individual insurance marketplace set up by the ACA. These changes generally tighten accessibility within the marketplace and reduce the use of the premium tax credit, an income-based tax credit that helps individuals afford coverage.
Similar to changes made to Medicaid and Medicare, the law limits access to the premium tax credit based on citizenship status thereby removing a valuable ACA tool for certain families.
Sections 71303 through 71305 limit the use of the premium tax credit by expanding eligibility verification requirements before enrollment.
Conclusion
Over the next five to ten years, as the provisions described above come into effect, a significant portion of the American healthcare landscape will be impacted.
The changes to coverage enrollments, reimbursements, and financing options will force healthcare providers and policymakers to find new ways to ensure care is available and affordable.
These impacts could require providers to demand more from private insurers, which will increase rates for individuals not on government plans. In this way, the impact of 10 million individuals losing health care coverage could produce changes throughout the healthcare ecosystem.
With many of these changes due to take effect in the coming years, debates over their impact will not go away. In fact, we should expect to see earnest efforts to reverse these changes as soon as 2027 if the makeup of the House and Senate shifts following the midterm elections. Plural will be closely following these debates as they happen and we encourage you to follow along in Plural as well!
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
On July 4th, President Trump signed H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, into law. The 330-page act contains provisions that will reshape nearly every sector of the American economy and society. The rushed passage and sweeping scope of H.R. 1 have left many wondering: What’s actually in the bill and how will it affect me?
At Plural, this opacity strikes directly against our mission. From our open datato our AI bill summarizer trained specifically on legislative text, we strongly believe in the power of technology to unlock legislative insights for policy professionals, activists, and citizens alike. With this mission in mind, we are kicking off a series of One Big Beautiful Bill explainers. Each week we will dive into the megabill’s impact in a specific subject area with a text-first approach that pulls impacts directly from the bill. This week we kick off with a look at how the new law will impact American education.
Education is always at the forefront of public policy debates throughout the United States. The issue area is uniquely a core responsibility of local, state, and federal levels of government. At the federal level, the primary mechanism for effecting change is through the various ways in which the federal government finances education. This proved to be the case as we read through H.R. 1, with some of the most significant changes to education policy being directly tied to federal financing. Read on for an analysis of some of the most impactful education provisions within President Trump’s signature legislative package.
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future.
That’s the power of Plural.
It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists.
We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to make full participation possible.
Our Mission
The Power of Plural
We help you shape policy together, so you can shape the future. It starts with providing the most complete information about the policies that impact us.
The policymaking process is opaque, hard to access, and difficult to influence alone.
It takes extreme effort and vigilance just to track policy—much less to create a positive impact. If you can’t react fast or fully engage your team, laws will pass without you.
The teams that forge the policies of tomorrow will use the latest technology to empower many voices. Plural exists to make policy creation more transparent, responsive, and inclusive. And to make full participation possible.
Created for policy wonks, by policy wonks.
We are leaders, thinkers, innovators, public policy wonks, and technologists. We are also constituents, neighbors, advocates, disruptors, and our vision is to bring visibility into the policy process and improve the means to participate in democracy. At Plural, we’re proud to provide intuitive, effective solutions for mission-oriented organizations to help them meet their goals.
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First and foremost, we’re dedicated to our users. We take a user-centric approach to building our products, and we’re proud of our connections with our customers who use our product to do important work every day.
Transparent
We value trust and transparency. We want to cut the dishonesty and mistrust out of public policy, and we believe that democracy work best when information is accessible and honest.
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Speaking of honesty, let’s keep it real. What we’re building at Plural is bold. Our vision is audacious, and we’re passionate about taking on this challenge. We’re also passionate about innovation, good design, and making a difference.
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“School choice” advocates scored a win in the bill with the implementation of section 70411. The section creates a $1,700 tax credit for donations made to “scholarship granting organizations” (SGOs) which award scholarships for K-12 students to attend private schools. Taxpayers will now be able to effectively redirect up to $1,700 of their tax burden to help fund private K–12 education.
Increased Ability to Use 529 Plans for K-12 Education
H.R. 1 broadens the range of expenses 529 plans can cover in a K-12 setting to include instructional materials, tutoring, dual enrollment costs, and more. The bill also doubles the amount parents are able to withdraw for K-12 expenses from $10,000 to $20,000.
Saving & Paying for Higher Education
Employer Payments of Student Loans
H.R. 1 makes permanent a provision from the CARES Act that allows employers to provide up to $5,250 in student loan payments as a benefit for employees on a tax-free basis. The law also adds a new provision to tie this cap to inflation so it will rise along with the cost-of-living index.
Use of 529 Plans for Postsecondary Credentialing
In addition to creating more 529 flexibility as it relates to K-12 education, the bill would also allow for 529 withdrawals to pay for “postsecondary credentialing expenses” including licenses and certificates.
Limitations on Federal Loan Programs
Subtitles B-D of Title VIII overhaul the existing structure of student loan programs available to borrowers today. Notable changes include:
Places caps on annual and lifetime borrowing for graduate and professional students as well as parents of students.
Limits lifetime borrowing for all student loans to just over $250,000.
Reduces the number of repayment plans available to most borrowers from 12 to 2.
Limits Pell Grant eligibility to full-time students.
Eliminates deferment options that aid borrowers when they are unemployed or facing economic hardship for loans beginning in 2027.
It is likely that these limitations on federal student loans will drive more borrowers towards private options. This is especially true for graduate students and those pursuing medical degrees who generally have to borrow hundreds of thousands of dollars to afford schooling.
Taxation of Private Institutions of Higher Education
Expansion of the “Endowment Tax”
The bill makes adjustments to section 4968 of the tax code, which applies to the taxation of private college and university endowments. While the existing law includes a flat 1.4% tax rate for eligible institutions, this bill would increase that rate based on the size of the school’s endowment. The bill exempts schools with fewer than 3,000 tuition-paying students from the tax.
Additional Taxation of Excess Compensation at Tax-Exempt Organizations
Section 70416 of the bill amends existing law requiring tax-exempt organizations to pay an excise tax on compensation of their five highest paid employees if they earn more than $1 million annually. The Big Beautiful Bill applies this “excess compensation” tax to all employees earning more than $1 million annually. By removing the limit of the five highest paid employees the bill creates additional tax liability for non-profit institutions of higher education with more than five employees earning in excess of $1 million.
Spending Cuts that Could Impact Schools
Eliminating Spending to Address Air Pollution at Schools
Section 60005 eliminates unobligated funding that was previously made available to address air pollution at schools.
Cuts to Medicaid and SNAP
Through the implementation of work requirements and other restrictions, H.R.1 is expected to result in millions of Americans losing access to Medicaid, SNAP, and other social safety net programs. Cuts to these programs don’t just affect families – they threaten school budgets too. Medicaid helps fund school nurses, mental health services, and disability support. SNAP eligibility affects access to school meals, a key part of many students’ daily nutrition. Additionally, these cuts are expected to result in a loss of healthcare and/or food assistance for millions of students, families, and teachers.
Conclusion
While education wasn’t the main focus of H.R. 1, the wide-ranging bill will have a significant impact on schools and students throughout the country. In effect, the law expands private education support, restricts federal aid for higher education, and weakens school-linked safety nets. Whether you’re a parent, student, or educator, H.R. 1 touches every level of the education system.
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
It is safe to say we have entered a new phase of President Trump’s second presidency. The chaotic first four months was largely defined by an unprecedented flurry of executive action, Elon Musk’s efforts to shrink the federal bureaucracy, and rising geopolitical tensions resulting from the administration’s trade policies.
The centerpiece of this next phase of Trump’s presidency is unquestionably the fate of H.R. 1(One Big Beautiful Bill Act), the massive tax cut and spending package that includes many of the President’s campaign promises.
The President has set an ambitious, and symbolic, goal for lawmakers to get this bill to his desk for signature by the Fourth of July. House Republicans, generally seen as a block united around the President and his agenda, did their part in passing the bill on to the Senate on May 22nd.
Since that passage, however, it has become clear that getting a sufficient number of Senate Republicans on board will require significant changes, and likely more time. With 53 members of the Senate, Republicans can only afford to lose three votes to maintain their chances of passing the bill through reconciliation, a budget tool we’ll discuss below.
As many as ten Republican Senators are seen as potential “nay” votes on H.R. 1 including Josh Hawley (MO), Susan Collins (ME), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Jerry Moran (KS), and Ron Johnson (WI). The concerns of those legislators may very well lead to significant changes in the bill, particularly to provisions that reduce access to Medicaid and/or those that increase the national debt.
While the debate over these provisions, and the pressure on these legislators (from both sides) will lead to important changes, we want to focus on a quieter process that may result in equally significant alterations to the package passed by the House: the Byrd Rule.
But First, What is Reconciliation?
Even though I’m already 300+ words into this blog, I need to put off our main topic, the Byrd Rule, for just a little bit longer to discuss a different complex Senate procedure: Reconciliation.
Established by the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, reconciliation is a special legislative process that allows certain spending bills to bypass the Senate filibuster (and therefore proceed to passage) with just a simple majority of votes (51 Senators or 50+ the Vice President) rather than the typical 60 votes needed to break a filibuster (and pass legislation).
In an era of small Senate majorities and limited bipartisanship on major bills, reconciliation has become a necessary tool to fulfill campaign promises. But this powerful tool comes with limitations.
To qualify for reconciliation, a bill must be solely focussed on spending, revenue, and debt-limit changes (more on this later). Many of the most significant legislative accomplishments of the past fifteen years (including Trump’s Tax Cut and Jobs Act and Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act) were only possible due to reconciliation.
The Byrd Rule
The Byrd Rule, named after Senator Robert Byrd, specifies the circumstances in which a provision is deemed to be “extraneous” and therefore not eligible to be included in a reconciliation package. The rule also prevents provisions that would change Social Security or increase the federal deficit beyond a ten-year window.
Even with the Byrd Rule’s specifications, there is always debate over the eligibility of certain provisions to pass through reconciliation. That debate is generally decided by the opinion of the Senate Parliamentarian. Recent examples of the Byrd Rule’s impact include the removal of a provision defunding Planned Parenthood from the Better Care Reconciliation Act (which eventually failed) and the removal of a $15 minimum wage provision from the American Rescue Plan Act (which became law without the wage increase).
Because complex Senate processes aren’t fun enough on our own, the Byrd rule also comes with puns to define the application of the rule:
Byrd Bath: the review and “cleaning” process to remove any noncompliant provisions from reconciliation bills.
Byrd Droppings: those noncompliant provisions that are cut from the bill following a Byrd Bath.
Byrd Watchers: all of us closely following the changes this process will affect on the final bill Senators will consider.
The Byrd Meets the Big Beautiful Bill
While every piece of the final text will be reviewed for potential Byrd Rule violations, certain provisions stick out as having the potential to run afoul of the rule:
AI Regulation Moratorium: A somewhat surprising inclusion in the House-passed bill was a ten-year ban on the enforcement of state and local regulation of Artificial Intelligence. As we have written about at length, state actions to regulate AI have been plentiful recently. Beyond being controversial for the potential encroachment on state rights, this provision would seem to be “extraneous” to the budget-specific matters that reconciliation is reserved for.
Another Planned Parenthood Ban: The House bill includes language blocking Planned Parenthood from receiving federal funding. The provision faces an uphill battle towards inclusion given that Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough ruled against this language in 2017.
Permanent Tax Cuts: The reauthorization of the tax cuts passed in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is technically only necessary because Republicans needed to put an expiration on those tax cuts when passed to stay within the Byrd Rules limitations on budgetary impact beyond ten years. To avoid a similar circumstance in 2035, Republicans now want to make those tax cuts permanent. To do so, Republican authors of the megabill are arguing that a permanent extension of the tax cuts does not raise the deficit if you assume that current policy will continue (i.e. ignore the expiration date in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act). This is being referred to as using the “Current Policy Baseline.” Typically, the deficit impact would be calculated using “Current Law Baseline” which assumes the laws of today (including that expiration date) will continue. “Current Law Baseline” would indicate a significant impact to the deficit beyond ten years if these tax cuts were made permanent. It’ll be up to the Parliamentarian whether the GOP’s use of “Current Policy Baseline” satisfies the Byrd Rule’s provisions, otherwise they’ll likely need to include a new expiration date on this extension.
Conclusion
You can expect to hear a lot of talk in the coming weeks about what parts of H.R. 1 might be altered as Senate leaders attempt to win over the most skeptical of their Republican colleagues. Any changes would then need to be agreed to in the House.
The Senate Parliamentarian and her staff will also be working in the background with the bill’s authors to determine what, if anything, will need to be removed from the bill for it to qualify for the reconciliation process. Taken together, each of these political processes will shape the remainder of the debate around the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the next phase of the Trump presidency.
Why Plural?
Plural is leading the shift toward smarter, AI-enabled policy work. With features like real-time policy tracking, stakeholder mapping, bill summarization, and collaborative workflows, Plural enables public affairs and compliance teams to:
Reduce time spent on manual research
Spot trends before competitors
Align faster across departments
Influence policy with precision
In a world where regulatory clarity is power, the AI advantage is real, and it’s here.
Don’t wait to adapt. Empower your team with Plural.
Ready to see what your team is missing?
Plural Legislative Intelligence powered by SAI360 gives government affairs teams real-time visibility into state and federal legislative activity — with AI-powered bill analysis, viability signals, and stakeholder engagement workflows built in.
And it’s the only platform that combines with integrated compliance workflow. Learn more by scheduling a live walkthrough.
How Policy Teams Can Balance Proactive and Reactive Strategies to Influence Public Policy
Public policy work is often seen as reactive—responding to government proposals as they arise. While this “defensive” approach is crucial, it’s only part of the picture. Effective advocacy also requires an “offensive” or proactive strategy. Many policy professionals find themselves spending most of their time on defense, but balancing both approaches is key to long-term success.
Though they may seem distinct, offensive and defensive policy work are interconnected. Advocates must navigate both, adapting their strategy to the political landscape and policy priorities.
Defensive Policy Work
Defensive advocacy involves identifying and responding to proposals that threaten the interests you support. For example, reproductive rights advocates may work against policies restricting access to care, while industry groups lobby against regulations that could harm their sector.
Despite its reactive nature, defensive policy work starts long before a harmful proposal emerges. A strong defense begins with a deep understanding of your cause and potential threats. The broader and more complex your company or organization, the more challenging this becomes. A healthcare policy team, for instance, must grasp the intricacies of operations, finances, and regulations to respond effectively to policy threats connected to insurance, labor, or public health.
Once you understand what you need to protect, the next step is setting up systems to detect potential threats. Your approach will depend on:
Geographic Scope – National organizations must track policies across the country, while state-based groups can focus on regional issues.
Policy Type – Some teams monitor legislation exclusively, while others track rulemaking by state or federal agencies.
Level of Government – Most teams monitor federal, state, and local policies but focus on the levels where they have the most influence.
Political intelligence tools like Plural enhance defensive strategies by automatically flagging potential threats and providing AI-powered analysis of legislation. This allows policy teams to quickly assess and respond to proposals.
The heart of defensive advocacy is action. When a threat arises, organizations must effectively communicate the policy’s impact and advocate for a solution—whether that means stopping a bill or negotiating a compromise. If successful, they can work to prevent similar threats in the future. If not, they must focus on mitigating the impact of the policy.
Since legislative threats are ongoing, policy teams must scale their responses based on severity and have a well-defined strategy to react quickly and effectively.
A strong defense begins with a deep understanding of your cause and potential threats.
Offensive Policy Work
While defensive policy work is reactive, offensive advocacy is proactive—shaping policies that align with an organization’s goals.
Offensive policy work starts with preparation. Policy teams collaborate with stakeholders to identify regulatory challenges and opportunities. For example, a healthcare advocacy team might push for Medicaid rate increases to expand access to care or advocate for changes to regulations that create unnecessary barriers for providers and patients.
Because time and political capital are limited, teams must prioritize their offensive efforts. Many organizations set annual goals for proactive policy work, guided by strong internal and external relationships.
Once a policy initiative is identified, teams must build coalitions and mobilize support inside and outside the legislature. This work requires strategic planning, public engagement, and a deep understanding of legislative and regulatory processes. While a bill may be introduced and debated over a few months, the groundwork—such as stakeholder engagement and advocacy planning—often takes years.
Conclusion
Balancing offensive and defensive advocacy is essential for effective public policy work. Defensive strategies help teams respond quickly to harmful proposals, while offensive efforts allow them to shape the policy landscape. Managing both, however, can be overwhelming, given the volume of legislative activity across different levels of government.
Tools like Plural help policy teams stay ahead by providing real-time alerts and AI-powered legislative analysis. By automating parts of the discovery and analysis process, Plural allows teams to focus on strategy, coalition-building, and direct engagement with policymakers. With the right tools and strategies in place, policy professionals can maintain a strong, balanced advocacy approach in an ever-changing political environment.
Explore Plural.
Plural Bill Tracking & Intelligence stands out for its deep policy coverage, real-time alerts, powerful AI-powered insights, and seamless collaboration features. It is designed for policy professionals, businesses, and advocacy groups that need an all-in-one solution to stay ahead of policy changes.
Whether you’re tracking state or federal legislation affecting your industry, monitoring policy developments, or engaging in advocacy efforts, Plural offers the reliability and intelligence needed to make informed decisions.
At Plural, our top priority is delivering the right public policy data to you, when and how you need it. Our platform is designed to categorize and deliver policy intelligence that is:
Comprehensive – You’ll never miss a bill.
Relevant – Targeted searches cut through the noise so you get only what matters.
Timely – Notifications arrive when you need them, in a format that’s easy to digest.
Beyond data delivery, Plural’s AI-powered analysis, intuitive interface, and collaboration tools help policy professionals act on insights more efficiently.
Stay in Control of Your Notifications
In this blog, we’ll show you how Plural’s customizable legislative bill notification settings let you receive updates at the cadence that best fits your workflow. We’ll also walk through an example of how different team members might automate their notifications to meet their specific needs.
Plural’s Four Notification Types
Plural organizes notifications into four distinct categories, making it easy for teams to optimize their data delivery. Each team member can adjust the frequency—or opt out—of any notification type to ensure they’re getting just the right amount of information.
Bill Update Notifications
Most Important For: Understanding Key Bill Movements
Plural will send you alerts of recent action on bills you are tracking in Plural via Bill Update Notifications. These emails will include each of your tracked bills with new actions, alongside a description of that new action and a link to visit the bill page within your Plural instance. Users leverage bill update notifications to keep their eye on the progress of the bills that matter to them most and to be the first informed about an upcoming public hearing or vote.
Saved Search Notifications
Most Important For: Bill Discovery
Plural’s saved search tool can do your team’s discovery work for you. After crafting a search that returns the bills a user cares about, they can save it to run constantly in the background and be alerted anytime a new result matches that search criteria. Saved Search Notifications highlight the newly introduced or amended legislation that your team needs to be aware of.
Recommended Bills Notifications
Most Important For: A Second Layer of Bill Discovery
In addition to the bills surfaced by your saved searches, Plural offers an additional tool to enhance your bill discovery through Recommended Bills. These recommendations, sent once weekly, are based on issue areas that matter to you. While these results are less tailored to your specific use case, they can serve well as an additional net to capture any legislation of interest you may have missed, or to monitor the pulse of an issue area within a jurisdiction.
Collaboration Notifications
Most Important For: Monitoring Team Activity, Engaging Team Members
Unlike similar tools, Plural was built with collaboration in mind. We understand that policy isn’t made in a vacuum and that advocacy teams must work with various (internal and external) stakeholders in their efforts to fight for their communities. Plural’s collaboration features allow you to easily share legislation, curate bill lists alongside team members, and collaboratively markup policy proposals. Collaboration notifications alert you to this activity, This can be especially useful for communication with stakeholders who may not be in the tool every day. If I know that I will need to ask our legal counsel questions periodically, but that they won’t be doing day-to-day tracking, I can ensure they have just their collaboration notifications turned on so that when I tag them in a bill asking for feedback I know it will stand out in their inbox.
Customizing Your Notifications
Each user has full control over which notifications they receive and how often. You can choose to get updates in real time, daily, or weekly.
Beyond these basic settings, Plural offers even more customization. Users can enable notifications for specific saved searches or adjust settings within individual workspaces. Many teams take advantage of this flexibility by setting general updates to daily or weekly while keeping real-time alerts for their most critical bills.
Example Use-Case: Policy Tracking for a Multi-layered, Distributive Team
Suppose Civic Eagle Associates (CEA) tracks state legislation across the country for their clients. CEA has a team of policy staff tasked with identifying new legislation that may be of interest to their clients, legislative consultants who create reports for clients, and legal counsel offering analysis to legislative consultants.
Policy Staff would benefit from turning on saved search emails at a daily cadence. This would allow them to log on each day with a list of bills to analyze to determine whether they fit into a client’s legislative interests. Bill update notifications would be less important to this group as they are primarily interested in bill discovery.
Legislative Consultants, on the other hand, could use saved search notifications sparingly but would want bill update notifications turned on at a daily or as soon as possible cadence. These bill notification emails could serve as the starting point for the updates they will send to their clients. Legislative Consultants would also turn their collaboration emails on to ensure they are updated when they receive a tag from Legal Counsel or Policy Staff.
Legal Counsel, who in this scenario is largely involved only when their analysis is needed, could rely primarily on collaboration emails to alert them whenever their help is needed.
Conclusion
Every year, we help thousands of users cut through the noise and stay on top of the legislative action that matters most to them. Customizable notifications are a key part of making this possible. With Plural, policy professionals can trust that they’re receiving accurate, timely updates tailored to their specific needs. Teams can align notifications with their workflows and responsibilities, improving efficiency in their advocacy efforts.
As we continue expanding our data, enhancing our tools, and refining the user experience, we’ll keep evolving our alert system to deliver even more value.
How will the outcome of the 2024 elections impact different legislative offices across the United States? Read our analysis today.
There’s less than 70 days until Election Day. Both major political parties have now formally finalized their nominees for President and Vice President and the vast majority of Congressional and Gubernatorial races are set. Most of the focus will be on which party will control the White House and both chambers of Congress in January 2025. Understandably, there’s less attention paid to the vacancies those elections might create and what that could mean for public policy.
Some candidates for higher office resign any existing positions they hold. But many remain in office while running their campaign and stay in that office if they fail to win their new seat. In this blog, we take a look at some of these lesser-considered potential consequences of the upcoming 2024 elections this November.
IF The Harris-Walz Ticket Wins: Multiple Shifts in Minnesota
If Kamala Harris is elected, she will become just the second sitting Vice President to be elected President since the mid-19th century, joining President George H.W. Bush. While this ascent is somewhat rare, it is also fairly drama-free — her vacated office of the Vice Presidency would be filled by her running mate.
In this scenario, Governor Tim Walz vacating the Minnesota Governorship would have larger ripple effects. The Minnesota constitution rules that the lieutenant governor, currently Peggy Flanagan, would assume the governorship for the remainder of the term. Flanagan would become the state’s first female governor and the country’s first female Native American governor.
Here is where the succession gets particularly tricky — Flanagan’s seat would then need to be filled. The constitution would assign that office to the presiding officer of the Senate, currently Bobby Joe Champion. Champion would also make history as the state’s first Black lieutenant governor. His Senate seat would then be vacant until a special election was held. This vacancy could lead to gridlock in the 67-seat Senate if Democrats retain the only seat up for special election — District 45 — this fall. Otherwise, Republicans would regain control of the chamber, at least temporarily, should they win the District 45 race. With a new Governor and a need to elect a new Senate President, January could be an interesting month in St. Paul under this scenario.
IF The Trump-Vance Ticket Wins: Ohio Selects Another Senator
If the Republican ticket prevails, President Trump will become the second President to serve non-consecutive presidential terms, after Grover Cleveland. The only vacancy directly created by the election of the Trump-Vance ticket would be J.D. Vance’s Senate seat, which he won in 2022. If that seat becomes open, it would happen just as voters in Ohio elect their other U.S. Senator. That race is currently underway between incumbent Sherrod Brown and businessman Bernie Moreno.
Ohio’s constitution would allow its sitting Governor, Republican Mike DeWine, to select Vance’s replacement. That person would serve through 2026, with a special election held for the seat that fall. Governor DeWine would certainly select a Republican to fill the seat, so there won’t be an impact on partisan control of the Senate. But just who he would choose will likely remain closely guarded until past Election Day. Should Moreno fail to win the Senate race, it’s possible that Governor DeWine could appoint him. Other options include State Senator Matt Dolan, former Presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, and many of the current Republican U.S. Representatives from Ohio. The selection of Dolan or any other sitting legislator would, of course, set off another round of vacancy replacements.
U.S. Representatives Running For Promotions, and the Seats They Are Leaving Behind
It’s common to see sitting U.S. Representatives run for U.S. Senate or Governor in their home state. This election cycle has been no different. Because U.S. Representatives run every two years, these candidates generally forgo re-election efforts in pursuit of their next office. This means that they will be out of office completely if they lose.
With their jobs on the line, U.S. Representatives generally run for higher office if:
Their House seat is fairly safe for their party to retain despite not running an incumbent
They have a pretty good chance of winning their race.
Nine sitting U.S. Representatives are major party nominees for U.S. Senate or Governor in 2024. All but three are heavily favored to win their races. Of these, only Rep. Slotkin of Michigan leaves a district considered a “toss-up” in 2024. Democrats will seek to hold onto her seat in addition to helping her reach the U.S. Senate.
The 2024 Elections and Beyond
Public policy is never a linear game. Policy professionals know that legislation can have both direct and indirect effects. Analyzing each of those impacts is essential to good governance. This is largely true in electoral politics as well. One race can have downstream effects on several offices and the shape of legislative institutions as a whole.
When January 2025 comes and it’s time to sort out the shake-ups in who is serving where, Plural will be here and ready to help you identify the legislators you need to speak with, along with their staff.
Here at Plural, we’re always hyperfocused on state legislative work. When most legislatures are in recess, we’re planning how to best present legislative insights to you when their activity starts back up again. This constant focus on looking ahead does make us feel a bit like the people who start counting down the days until Christmas while we’re still in July. But this level of preparation and awareness of what’s to come can help ensure that the policy professionals we serve can hit the ground running in the new year. So, without further ado, read on for our coverage of all the logistics you need to know to be prepared for the 2025 state legislative sessions.
The Schedule
A myriad of dates and deadlines make up legislative schedules. Three standard dates we like to be aware of heading into session are:
The estimated date that a state’s pre-filed bills become publicly available if that state allows for pre-filed bills.
The first day of the session.
The scheduled final day of session, or, where that date isn’t statutorily defined, an estimated timeframe for adjournment.
These three dates will help you and your organization begin to plan your time for the beginning of next year. They’ll help you identify when you’ll need to begin blocking time to review new bills each morning, planning travel to the capitol building, and scheduling a post-session retreat. These dates will frame your legislative work for next year. For those working across multiple states, this awareness can be especially helpful — it’ll help ensure your team is ready for the various busy periods throughout session.
Carry-over Legislation
In 2024, more than two dozen states carried over legislation from 2023. In 2025, however, most states will start with a fresh slate. Only two states — New Jersey and Virginia — may consider legislation that was introduced in 2024. With that being said, we know many state legislators throughout the country will re-introduce legislation that is identical to legislation considered in previous years. Plural’s related bills tool can help you identify this activity.
State Budgets
Forty-seven states will need to pass budgets for fiscal year 2026 in the upcoming legislative sessions. Kentucky, Virginia, and Wyoming are the only states that have already passed their FY 2026 budgets. However, it’s likely that they will still consider supplemental funding measures.
New Legislators
Eighty-five of the county’s 99 state legislative chambers will hold regular legislative elections in 2024. In total, nearly 6,000 individual state legislators will be re-elected or newly elected. While incumbents tend to have quite an advantage in races for legislative chambers, we are sure to see a lot of new faces in state capitols in 2025. New legislators and changing partisan distributions create new dynamics. Policy professionals must be aware of these factors going into next year’s legislative sessions.
Session Length
Clean slates, budget mandates, and new legislators mean that legislators will likely spend more time in session in 2025. Odd years generally have longer sessions as there’s more work for legislators in states that operate on a biennium.
Looking Ahead With Plural
The election will dominate the next few months. But this time is also crucial for preparing for the upcoming 2025 state legislative sessions. By predicting the makeup of legislatures and the mandates they have from voters, we can confidently outline each session’s structure and timing. This foresight enables advocates to plan their strategies and focus on the most important issues efficiently.
Top public policy teams across the country trust Pural for their legislative tracking needs. With Plural, you’ll:
Access superior public policy data
Be the first to know about new bills and changes in bill status
Streamline your day with seamless organization features
Harness the power of time-saving AI tools to gain insights into individual bills and the entire legislative landscape
Keep everyone on the same page with internal collaboration and external reporting all in one place
This blog delves into Plural’s AI-generated end-of-session report for Minnesota. Learn more and get started today.
At Plural, we’re committed to increasing access to and understanding of the public policy developments that shape our lives. We aim to increase transparency by providing easier access to public information. To this end, we’re leveraging technology to make digesting and acting on that information less intimidating.
Careful but ambitious adoption of artificial intelligence has been central to this strategy and has helped us expand access to legislative data. While we’ve always pursued a multifaceted approach in applying artificial intelligence to public policy data, we’ve recently moved towards creating comprehensive insights by leveraging our various datasets. The growth in our AI strategy and development can be seen with our latest release, Plural’s end-of-session report generator.
This tool, piloted in Minnesota before expansion to other jurisdictions, allows users to generate analyses of legislative action on various topics throughout a single legislative session. Like all of our AI features, these insights are rooted deeply in the source public policy data — bill text, votes, etc. — and not in external information like media coverage. This focus on the core policy data we have access to preserves accuracy and removes bias. As ever, we advise users to treat AI-generation tools as research and writing partners and to closely review and edit analyses for their own needs.
Below you can take a look at one of these reports, assessing developments in Education and Childcare policy during the 2023-2024 session of the Minnesota Legislature.
Minnesota Legislative Session 2023-2024: End of Session Report – Education and Childcare
Read the full text of Plural’s AI-generated end-of-session report for Minnesota’s Education and Childcare legislation throughout the 2023-2024 legislative session.
Plural’s AI-generated end-of-session report on education and childcare in Minnesota for the 2023-2024 legislative session. Read the full text in the opposite column and below.
Introduction
The 2023-2024 Minnesota legislative session saw significant activity in the realm of education and childcare policy. Key themes included expanding access to affordable education, strengthening support for diverse student populations, and bolstering the early childhood education system. This report provides a detailed overview of the major changes enacted through various bills.
Key Themes and Patterns
Affordability and Access: A major focus was placed on making education more affordable and accessible, particularly for low-income families and underrepresented groups. This is evident in the establishment of the North Star Promise tuition-free program (HF2073), expansion of early learning scholarships (HF2292), and provision of free school meals for all students (HF5).
Equity and Inclusion: Several bills addressed educational equity by mandating ethnic studies curricula (HF2497), expanding American Indian education programs (HF2497, HF5237), and strengthening protections for students with disabilities (HF121, SF3567).
Workforce Development: Recognizing the critical need for qualified educators, the legislature passed bills to support the early childhood education workforce through grant programs (HF2292) and address teacher shortages by modifying licensure requirements (HF2497, SF3567).
Mental Health and Well-being: The session saw increased attention to student mental health, with bills requiring mental health instruction (SF3567) and expanding access to telehealth services in schools (SF3567).
Extremely Important Changes
Free School Meals for All Students (HF5): This landmark legislation guarantees free breakfast and lunch to all Minnesota students, regardless of income, eliminating financial barriers to school meals.
North Star Promise Tuition-Free Program (HF2073): This program aims to make college more affordable by providing tuition-free education to eligible students from families earning under $80,000.
Expansion of Early Learning Scholarships (HF2292): This initiative broadens access to high-quality early care and learning by expanding eligibility and increasing funding for early learning scholarships.
Mandated Ethnic Studies Curriculum (HF2497): This bill requires high schools to offer ethnic studies courses and mandates ethnic studies instruction in elementary and middle schools, promoting cultural understanding and inclusivity.
Strengthened Human Rights Protections (HF4109): This bill significantly expands and strengthens Minnesota’s human rights laws, broadening definitions of protected classes, increasing penalties for discrimination, and providing additional remedies for victims.
Bill Summaries
1. HF112 – Review of Physical Education Standards Delayed: This bill delays the review of physical education standards in Minnesota by four years, moving the start date from the 2022-2023 school year to the 2026-2027 school year.
2. HF1126 – Postsecondary Attainment Goals, Student Financial Aid, Institutional Licensure Provisions, and Institutional Grant Program Policy Changes Provided: This bill enacts various changes to higher education policies, including expanding postsecondary attainment goals, modifying grant and scholarship programs, refining definitions and exemptions for institutions, and adjusting data reporting requirements.
3. HF121 – Competency Attainment; Technical Changes Made, and Money Appropriated: This bill aims to improve the process of assessing and addressing competency issues in criminal proceedings, focusing on helping defendants attain competency. It includes terminology changes, refined definitions, clarified procedures for competency examinations, and establishes standards for competency attainment programs.
4. HF1486 – Supervised Practice of Alcohol and Drug Counseling by Former Students Allowed for Limited Time, HIV Training Requirements Modified in Substance Use Disorder Treatment Programs, Withdrawal Management License Requirements Modified, and Substance Use Disorder Treatment Client Record Documentation Requirements Modified: This bill allows recent graduates in alcohol and drug counseling to practice under supervision for a limited time, updates HIV training requirements in substance use disorder treatment programs, expands eligible facilities for withdrawal management program licensing, and modifies documentation requirements for client records.
5. HF2073 – Higher Education Finance and Policy Bill: This bill provides funding and policy changes for higher education, including increased appropriations for various institutions, creation of new scholarship and student aid programs (including the North Star Promise program), establishment of support centers, and modifications to grant programs and reporting requirements.
6. HF2292 – Early Learning Scholarships, Head Start, and Early Education Programs Modified; Early Childhood Educator Programs Provided; Reports Required; and Money Appropriated: This bill modifies Head Start funding, establishes the Great Start Scholarships Program, expands early learning scholarship eligibility, increases developmental screening aid, requires licensed teachers for preschool programs, creates an early childhood educator grant program, modifies the Quality Rating and Improvement System, and increases funding for various early childhood programs.
7. HF2497 – Education Finance Bill: This bill establishes new requirements for American Indian education and ethnic studies, makes changes to teacher licensure, creates new grant programs, prohibits American Indian mascots in schools, and makes various changes to curriculum, standards, and education programs.
8. HF3100 – Pension Finance Bill: This bill focuses on public pension plans, reducing the assumed investment rate of return, modifying postretirement adjustments, reducing vesting requirements, adjusting contribution rates, and providing direct state aid to various plans.
9. HF3489 – School Resource Officers; Public Safety Provided, Grounds for Use of Reasonable Force in Schools Modified, School Resource Officer Duties Defined and Minimum Training Requirements Established, School Resource Officer Model Policy Development Required, and Money Appropriated: This bill clarifies the role of school resource officers, modifies the grounds for use of force in schools, establishes specific duties and training requirements for SROs, mandates the development of a model SRO policy, and provides funding for implementation.
10. HF3613 – Forecasted Metro Mobility Funding Clarifications Provided, Education Forecast Adjustments Effective Date Provided, and Money Appropriated: This bill makes technical corrections to the forecasted Metro Mobility funding statute, changes effective dates related to education forecast adjustments, and provides a retroactive effective date for a separate piece of legislation.
11. HF4024 – Higher Education Policy and Finance Bill: This bill modifies funding for ALS research grants, expands eligibility for the Fostering Independence Higher Education Grants program, adjusts funding for the North Star Promise scholarship program, establishes new policies for campus sexual misconduct and criminal records in admissions, regulates online program management companies, implements protections for pregnant and parenting students, modifies requirements for private career schools, and makes various technical changes to higher education statutes.
12. HF4109 – Human Rights Law Provided, and Civil Penalties and Other Remedies Provided: This bill significantly expands and strengthens Minnesota’s human rights laws by broadening definitions of protected classes, increasing penalties for discrimination, and providing additional remedies for victims.
13. HF4518 – Education Finance Forecast Adjustments Made, and Money Appropriated: This bill proposes adjustments to education finance appropriations for fiscal years 2024 and 2025, covering various areas of education funding, including general education, special education, early childhood education, and facilities.
14. HF5 – Free School Lunch and Breakfast Provided for Students, and Money Appropriated: This bill establishes a comprehensive free school meals program in Minnesota, providing funding to ensure all students can receive free breakfast and lunch. It also adjusts related funding mechanisms and allocates resources for implementation.
15. HF5040 – Pensions Supplemental Budget Bill: This bill proposes changes to various public employee pension and retirement plans, including adjusting retirement ages, contribution rates, benefit formulas, and eligibility criteria for different plans.
16. HF5237 – Education Supplemental Budget Bill: This bill makes extensive changes to laws related to children, education, child protection, and family services. Key proposals include modifying education funding provisions, implementing the “Read Act,” expanding American Indian education programs, revising teacher policies, updating charter school regulations, and making changes to child protection laws, foster care, adoption procedures, and support services.
17. SF3567 – Omnibus Education Policy Bill: This bill makes numerous technical and policy changes across multiple areas of K-12 education, including education excellence, teacher licensure and training, reading instruction, special education, charter schools, nutrition and libraries, health and safety, early learning, and education partnerships.
Conclusion
The 2023-2024 Minnesota legislative session brought about substantial changes to education and childcare policies, reflecting a commitment to expanding access, promoting equity, and supporting the well-being of all learners. These changes are expected to have a significant impact on the state’s education system and the lives of children and families for years to come.
Get Started With Plural’s AI-Generated End-of-Session Reports
Top public policy teams in Minnesota and across the country trust Plural for their legislative intelligence needs. With Plural, you’ll:
Access superior public policy data
Be the first to know about new bills and changes in bill status
Streamline your day with seamless organization features
Harness the power of time-saving AI tools to gain insights into individual bills and the entire legislative landscape
Keep everyone on the same page with internal collaboration and external reporting all in one place
Interested in getting started? Create a free account or book a demo today!
